Feb. 24, 2013 1:22 a.m. | For the third time this season the Homestead boys basketball team gave defending WIAA Division 1 state champion Germantown a battle, but for the third time, the Warhawks’ size and length proved too much.

Top-seeded Germantown had a 17-3 lead at the end of the first quarter and never looked back in defeating fourth-seeded Homestead, 70-44, in a regional final Saturday in front of a standing-room-only crowd.

“We did what we had to do to take care of this team,” Germantown coach Steve Showalter said. “Nothing was easy. We had some spurts where things weren’t going right.”

The Warhawks (24-0) notched their 52nd straight win, a streak that dates back to the 2011-12 season. The win earned them a spot in the sectional semifinals Thursday against No. 3 seed Arrowhead at Waukesha West.

If a first quarter can turn a game one way or another, the Warhawks made it count, holding the Highlanders to just 1 of 11 shooting. As they have done all season, Germantown used its size and length.

Feb. 21, 2013 10:57 p.m. | He went up on the riser behind the scorer's table and posed for a picture with his Mom.

That was one of the first things Menomonee Falls senior 182-pound wrestler Ayoola Olapo did after earning a berth in the WIAA State Individual semifinals with a 3-1 overtime upset of Hudson's Derek Schindler Thursday night in a quarterfinal bout at the Kohl Center in Madison.

"I truested my stamina," he said, "but I tell you, I was never so tired in a match before. I just never second-guessed myself."

And in doing so, Olapo made sure that sophomore 106-pound teammate Aaron Daly had company in the semifinals, as Daly too had earned a berth in Friday night's penultimate round with a 5-1 win over Franklin's Xianou Xiong in his quarterfinal match.

"This feels amazing," said Daly, who is making his first trip to state. "It was my initial goal, to be able to get onto the medal stand (top six) and place. Now I hope to maybe win again and go even further."

Feb. 21, 2013 9:36 a.m. | Superintendent of the Germantown School District Susan Borden is resigning from her position at the end of the school year.

Borden has accepted a position as superintendent of the DeForest Area School District in Madison. Her last day in Germantown is June 30, after which she will immediately begin her position with DeForest.

"It's just a wonderful opportunity personally and professionally," she said.

The School Board will approve her resignation at its regular meeting at 7 p.m. Monday and decide what route to take in finding a replacement.

Feb. 20, 2013 8:04 p.m. | Germantown - Jerry's Old Town Inn, a shuttered restaurant on Main St., has been purchased out of foreclosure and will be reopened in coming months, Chaz Hastings, the new owner, said Wednesday.

Hastings, who also owns Milwaukee Harley-Davidson as well as taverns in South Milwaukee, Butler, Richfield and the Town of Erin, has also purchased the Von Rothenburg Bier Stube, a beer hall right next to Jerry's, at N116-W15841 Main St. in Germantown.

Jerry's first opened in the late 1970s and was known for its ribs.

The Bier Stube features a variety of German beers on tap and German-themed décor.

Hastings said the Bier Stube has been remodeled to reflect even more of a German theme than it already had.

Feb. 18, 2013 2:20 p.m. | The village of Menomonee Falls was recently named one of the safest cities in America.

This honor was received from the neighborhood research site Neighborhood Scout, which looked at cities with a population of over 25,000. The award will be presented in front of the Menomonee Falls Village Board at 6:30 p.m. Monday at Village Hall, N8480 Pilgrim Road, according to Police Chief Anna Ruzinski.

The award was unsolicited and based on the total number of crimes per 1,000 residents. Data used for the research included the total crimes in the village reported to the FBI, as well as the total population.

Crime statistics reflect the 2011 calendar year, which are the most recent vetted by the FBI.

Feb. 14, 2013 10:16 p.m. | Veteran Nicolet boys basketball coach Paul Hepp probably knows his team did Germantown coach Steve Showalter and his defending state champion Warhawks a huge favor on Jan. 4, when they scared the heck of them in a 76-69 loss, the closest North Shore game of the year for Germantown.

And how did Showalter and the Warhawks pay Hepp and the Knights back in the regular season finale Thursday on Nicolet's senior night?

In a very rude and thoroughly impressive fashion, as Germantown scored the first eight points of the game and never gave Nicolet a chance to breath as the Warhawks won their 50th game in a row with a 99-45 demolition.

"It's like I told our guys," said Hepp. "It wasn't a revenge game for them because we didn't beat them (back in January), but they just wanted to show how good they really are and they did."

And in doing so, Germantown continued a season-long trend of showing up and playing great against very good competition, because these Knights (9-5 in North Shore play and 14-8 overall) had won six in a row, had held their last four opponents to under 50 points and had won 13 of their last 16 going into this contest.

Feb. 12, 2013 9:51 p.m. | The Menomonee Falls and Wauwatosa wrestling teams were competing for a little bit of history Tuesday night in the WIAA State Team Sectional at Arrowhead.

So they decided to put on a good show.

And the final act was the second period technical fall that the Falls' 182-pounder Ayoola Olapo earned over Tosa's Matt Miller that drew the curtain down on a sensational, intense, and thrilling 30-27 victory for the Indians over the Woodland Conference champions.

"It was just a great high school event," said 11-year Falls coach Jim McMahon. "I don't know much it cost people to get in here, but they sure got their money's worth."

"...We talked about the journey, some of these kids were born wrestlers, some have been with us since seventh and eighth grade and some just joined us in high school. They all came together to make this happen."

Feb. 12, 2013 5:52 p.m. | After several years of study, the City of Milwaukee and Waukesha County are close to agreement on a plan to jointly operate a recycling program.

Mayor Tom Barrett, who worked with Waukesha County Executive Dan Vrakas on the proposal, called it a perfect example of a blue city (Democratic) working with a red county (Republican).

"We have worked together and we are pleased with this," Barrett said Tuesday.

On Wednesday, the Common Council's Public Works Committee will consider a resolution that would set in motion a plan to enter into a contract for the processing of recyclables under a single-stream system. In a single-stream system, residents put their recyclables into one container; the materials are separated at a facility.

Feb. 08, 2013 10:21 a.m. | In this week's Land and Space video, reporter Tom Daykin discusses how the village of Menomonee Falls, which financed the Radisson Hotel development, has gained more control over the hotel, setting the stage for its possible future sale.

The Vikings (14-4, 11-0 in the Wisconsin Little Ten) joined an ever-expanding list of teams on the wrong end of the Warhawks’ stampede back to Madison.

So it was business as usual on Tuesday as the Warhawks stormed ahead early and methodically built a comfortable lead behind the steady leadership of 7-foot standout senior center Luke Fischer and speedy junior guard LaMonte Bearden.

Bearden led the Warhawks with a game-high 27 points, while Fischer chipped in with 19 and was a constant rebounding and shot-blocking presence.

“I thought we put such a great effort in early defensively that we tired ourselves out,” Wisconsin Lutheran head coach Ryan Walz said. “You have to work so hard to stop them, I think we just ran out of gas. We have not played a team with that kind of length.

Feb. 06, 2013 1:08 p.m. | A commercial bakery moved a step closer to construction on Tuesday after the Menomonee Falls Plan Commission approved a new facility proposed for the Westbrook Business Park.

The 22,047-square-foot building on the west side of Westbrook would serve as headquarters for the company. It would handle the administrative, baking, warehousing and distribution for the company that was not identified in village documents.

"They need a much larger space so it's a great opportunity to come to our community and a great opportunity for us to embrace a new business," said Village Trustee and member of the Plan Commission Mike McDonald. He did not know the name of the business.

He did say plans call for the bakery to have a small retail area in the front of the building, though much of the business will be for wholesale.

McDonald said the company has plans to grow rapidly within the next few years. According to village documents, there are currently 29 employees working on one shift; however, they plan to grow to accommodate 100 employees across multiple shifts within three years.

Feb. 05, 2013 10:29 p.m. | Sussex Hamilton girls basketball coach Dan Carey admits that his team is still getting used to the fact that tough-as-nails forward Jenny Shernell is gone for the season due to a knee injury.

But Carey said the erratic nature of the offense for the Greater Metro Conference-leading Chargers' Tuesday night against archrival Menomonee Falls had more to do with the tenacity of their rival and basic inconsistency than any one player's absence.

Still, Hamilton took control midway through the first quarter and never let go, as the lead never fell below six points in the second half of a 48-37 decision.

"We needed to find a rhythm to our offense," said Carey, "but a lot of credit for that not happening tonight was Craig (Falls' coach Amundson) and his team. They took us out of a lot of the things we like to do and made it difficult."

But still, third-ranked in state Hamilton was able to secure a season sweep over the Indians as they improved to 11-0 in Greater Metro Conference play and 18-1 overall while Falls fell to 5-6 and 10-9, respectively.

The Warhawks, who have not lost since falling to Appleton East in the 2011 postseason, scored 36 points in the first quarter on the way to a 61-27 halftime advantage. They have won 46 consecutive games.

The Oak Creek (16-1) girls dispatched Racine Case, 55-40, and are considered a legitimate Division 1 title contender.

Martin is slated to step into her post as principal of Ben Franklin Elementary School Feb. 25.

She most recently worked as principal at Barton Elementary School in West Bend, where she has served since 2011. Before that, Martin served as the director of Washington County Head Start for three years. She served as assistant high school principal for two years, math department chair for one year and was a math teacher for five years.

Martin has facilitated Barton Elementary as a Response to Intervention demonstration site for the past two years and has implemented Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports at the school. Menomonee Falls uses both RtI and PBIS at its schools.

"Our leadership team is remarkably strong. Cassie Martin is another great addition to the team," said Superintendent Patricia Greco. "Cassie is passionate about making a difference in the lives of every child, and she is deeply talented in working with families and staff in leading a strong school culture. We are very fortunate to have Cassie joining us."

Feb. 04, 2013 9:00 a.m. | A commercial bakery would be part of a new building proposed for Westbrook Business Park in Menomonee Falls.

The 22,047-square-foot building would serve as headquarters and house all the administrative, baking, warehousing and distribution functions of the company, which wasn't named in the plans disclosed by the village.

The Plan Commission is to review the proposal at its Tuesday meeting.

The bakery will accommodate some walk-up traffic for retail purchases, but most of its business is as a wholesaler, the proposal says. The company has 29 employees, with plans to grow to 100 employees within three years.

The proposed 3.5-acre development site at Westbrook is about two blocks south of Main St., about halfway between Old Orchard Road and N. 124th St. The proposed building's developer is listed as JMJ RE Acquisition LLC.

Feb. 01, 2013 11:07 p.m. | Menomonee Falls wrestling coach Jim McMahon has developed the club team, he has searched every corner and hallway in the school, and he has attended countless youth tournaments.

And all for the moment that occured Friday night at Marquette, when his happy Indian team, fresh off winning a share of their first Greater Metro Conference title in seven years with the hard-won league tourney crown, called over the coaches and made sure that they were in the countless team pictures that were being taken.

"We have a really great group of kids," said McMahon, "and it's not just the 14 (on varsity). Great kids and great parents who have put a lot of energy and time into this. Club kids, kids from the hallways. It's a credit to all of them. Really a great credit."

The Indians picked up individual championships from Aaron Daly at 106 pounds, Bill Holz at 120, Casey Crangle at 126, Sam Schwabenlander at 145 and Ayoola Olapo at 182 en route to a title-earning total of 246.5 points.

West Allis Central was second with 218 and West Allis Hale, which beat the Indians last week for the GMC dual meet crown, was third with 204.